Farm Futures magazine
recently released its survey of 2018 planting intentions, which shows that
farmers aren’t quite ready to make major changes to their crop rotations.
However, they are going to plant more of what paid best in 2017. For the first
time since 1983, farmers want to plant more soybeans than corn. Back then, the
government’s PIK program idled millions of corn acres, but even then the
difference was just 35,000 acres. Growers are planning to put in 90.1 million
acres of crops this year, not much different than in 2017. Farm Futures is
projecting more wheat planting this year, saying farmers are ready to put in 11.8
million acres of spring wheat, up 6.7 percent from last year. The first Farm
Futures survey of 2018 planting intentions showed farmers wanting to boost corn
acres and cut back on soybeans, but price relationships have changed quite a
bit in the last four months. Cotton farmers also intend to raise the amount of
planted acres to 13.2 million, a five percent jump. Cotton was one of the few
bright spots in the crop community in 2017. Farm Futures did say that all of
this information could be subject to change based on changing prices and the
weather.
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